Coronation Street star accused of ‘making disability up for benefits’ with abuse coming daily
Coronation Street’s Cherylee Houston has shared details about the abuse she suffers regarding her disability.
Cherylee’s character Izzy Armstrong arrived on the cobbles back in 2010, and during that time fans have seen her romances with Kirk Sutherland (Andy Whyment) and Gary Windass (Mikey North).
Izzy and Gary aren’t together anymore, but are often seen co-parenting their son Jake Windass (Bobby Bradshaw).
Away from her life as an actress, Cherylee is hugely passionate about working to remove barriers for other disabled people.
Cherylee has Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome, which is a rare connective tissue disorder that impacts collagen proteins, joints and skin.
Sadly, abuse and trolling is something Cherylee regularly faces.
This week, the star appeared on Good Morning Britain to discuss the news singer Ariana Grande is taking a ‘step back from visibility’ after her tour ends in London.
After talking about the abuse Ariana has faced, presenters Kate Garraway and Richard Madeley asked Cherylee, a performer herself, about her own experiences with trolls.
Cherylee revealed that during times she’s been on TV and her wheelchair hasn’t been in view, she has received bullying as a result.
The star shared that she’s had comments from people accusing her of making her disability up, and added that ‘we all get that on a daily basis as disabled people’.
She further explained: ‘Myself and my friend were wheeling down the street and a man was shouting out about how much benefits we got. It happens a lot, all of the time’.
‘I think some of it is about our representation and understanding of wheelchair users and the same with neurodiversity. There’s so much lack of understanding, but because we’re not on screen, our stories aren’t told, our news isn’t told, I think that’s a big change.’
In 2022, Cherylee was awarded an MBE for services to disabled people and drama.
‘If you think when you were growing up who your role models were, who influences you, if you as a disabled child don’t have that, how do you know what you can do?’, the actress said at the time, discussing the importance of seeing disabled people on screens.
‘I firmly believe the more we’re on our screens, the more we’re going to be understood, the more people care and empathise and will ensure that we will have equal rights and equal opportunity, because it’s about equality.’
In 2021, Cherylee was part of a Corrie storyline that highlighted the difficulty millions of disabled people experienced during the pandemic and the pressures they were under while trying to work remotely and shield at the same time.
